Nurse was
suspended one game
by the NHL Department of Player Safety on Wednesday for head-butting Kings center Phillip Danault in Game 5 in Edmonton on Tuesday.
The Oilers lost 5-4 in overtime and trail 3-2 in the best-of-7 series. Nurse was not penalized for the incident, which occurred with 9.3 seconds remaining in the second period.
"He's a pretty good hockey player that's been taken out of our lineup," Edmonton coach Jay Woodcroft said Wednesday. "But we've had him out of our lineup before and (have) been able to handle it. That's what we expect to do tomorrow."
Nurse has two points (one goal, one assist) in the series and leads the Oilers with an average ice time of 21:45 per game. Edmonton has lost the past two games.
"I was a little surprised to hear that," Oilers defenseman Cody Ceci said of the suspension. "I didn't see it happen during the game, but, yeah, it's a big loss for us. He plays big minutes for us and has been a big leader on and off the ice, so guys are just going to have to step up."
Nurse missed Edmonton's final four regular-season games because of a lower-body injury. Ceci, Nurse's usual partner, played with Brett Kulak during that stretch. Ceci said he is confident Kulak can step up in Nurse's absence.
Kulak had one assist and four hits in 19:05 in Game 5.
"At this point of the year, everybody's kind of played a little bit with everyone, so we're all comfortable with each other," Ceci said. "I enjoy playing with Kulak, he's a great player. And he had a great game for us last night, so if that's the pairing, I'm looking forward to playing with him."
The Oilers have options to fill out their lineup; Kris Russell, a veteran defenseman who has played 15 seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets, St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, Dallas Stars and Oilers, is the likely. Russell had one shot, three hits and was minus-1 in 9:43 in Game 1, a 4-3 loss on May 2. Edmonton played that game with 11 forwards and seven defenseman.
Woodcroft also said the Oilers will recall defenseman Philip Broberg, a first-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, from Bakersfield of the American Hockey League and he will participate in the morning skate Thursday. Broberg had three points (one goal, two assists) in 23 regular-season games. If he plays, it would be his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut.
"We have a lot of available good players at our disposal, so we're going to ice the lineup that we think gives us the best chance," Woodcroft said.
Oilers forward Zack Kassian was fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, for cross-checking Kings defenseman Sean Durzi with one minute left in the second period on Tuesday. Kassian received a minor penalty for cross-checking.
Los Angeles went 1-for-5 on the power play in Game 5.
"Obviously, staying disciplined is a huge thing," Edmonton forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. "You want to get into a rhythm, regardless of how good your penalty kill is playing. I mean, you want to just get into a rhythm, get everyone playing, feeling good out there, and obviously penalties put a damper on that, so we have to stay disciplined."
